Winter Love
by Piero217
Summary: A 14-year old Jamie convinces Jack to meet his new girlfriend and her older sister. But the girls' family hides a deep secret, and little does Jack know that this encounter will both endanger his life and the fun he protects in children... and bring back the memories of a long lost love...
1. Prologue: First Day of Winter

**A/N: I know that there are more than enough Jelsa fics to go around, but this idea came to me the other day and I decided to give it a shot. Hopefully this is something that nobody has come up with so far.**

**Be warned: This is not gonna be your everyday Jelsa fic. There will be romance, and there will be drama, but there will ****_not_**** be a happy ending. In fact, it's gonna be more like a Shakesperean kind of ending. So, if you're looking for something guaranteed to be all happiness and joy, I suggest you return to the crossovers page and search for something else. Otherwise, if you're willing to endure the pain, feel free to start reading. I promise it will be worth your while.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own ****_Frozen_**** or ****_Rise of the Guardians_****... sadly.**

* * *

My favorite place? Hmm, that's a tough one…

Just kiddin'. That's a no-brainer, actually.

I've been all over the world, visited many wonderful places, seen the most amazing landscapes. Some of them could use a bit of white from time to time, but my powers can only do so much. After all, if I tried to bring a snowy weather to places like the Sahara or the Amazon, I would probably cause an irreversible disaster on a global scale. Or not. I'd rather not find out anytime soon. Don't ask me how, but I just know that I must not mess with the world's natural balance, or the consequences would be quite unpleasant.

Hey, I told you not to ask me how!

But anyway, I'm getting a bit off track. My favorite place, without a doubt, is Burgess, a small town in Pennsylvania, USA. Why? Well, there are plenty of reasons. I was born and raised there before I became a spirit. I was reborn there. I became a Guardian in that place. And of course, my best friend and first believer lives there. His name is Jamie, and he is one exceptional kid.

My name is Jack Frost, Winter Spirit and Guardian of Fun. And today is the first day of winter.

Now, the science of it is really boring, but if you must know, winter officially begins in the Northern Hemisphere during the winter solstice—not counting the regions beyond the Arctic Circle where I've already introduced winter a month ago—which occurs at a specific time, not just day. This means that in order to introduce winter, I have to fly around the Earth at a speed of about… man, I don't know. _Real_ fast, I think? It's more or less like what Superman did in that 70s film, except that I don't travel back in time.

At least I have the advantage of being a spirit. It makes things a lot easier, as a regular human wouldn't survive traveling at such speed. Thankfully, I only have to do it every once in a while during the next three months. That leaves me with enough spare time to bring fun—and _have_ fun—in certain places where and when it's needed… and sometimes where and when it isn't.

What can I say? I'm a prankster at heart.

Anyway, tomorrow I'll visit Jamie. The kid probably could use a good snowball fight.

* * *

I arrive at Burgess at midday and find Jamie sitting at the porch of his house, his head resting on his hands and his rather soft gaze lost into the void. I feel tempted to throw a snowball at him, but then I think of something else to let him know that I'm here. I land as carefully and quietly as possible behind him.

"Somebody looks really dreamy," I say, making him jump.

"Jack!" he says, spinning around to give me a tight hug.

"Hey, kiddo," I reply, returning the hug. "How're you doin'?"

"I'm great. How about you?"

"Oh, you know," I say, letting go of him and holding my staff behind my neck with both hands. "Having lots of fun here and there. Now, will you tell me why you're acting like a happy zombie today?"

Jamie doesn't answer. He just sighs, smiling.

I think I know what's going on here. It's been 4 years since I became a Guardian, and Jamie is now 14. That means puberty, hormonal changes, and whatnot. _And…_

"What's her name?" I ask teasingly, smirking.

"Karin," he replies without hesitation, sighing again.

I rarely see this kind of stuff happen during winter. It's supposed to happen more often during spring—though I'm still to understand how a lonely sourpuss like Bunny manages to do that when he brings summer along with Easter—but I guess it _can_ occur at any time of the year. I bet he thinks this Karin girl is and will be his one and only true love. Any boy that's fallen in love at that age believes that, or at least boys with a heart like Jamie's. I wouldn't want to break it by telling him otherwise, even though most of the times it's true.

Well, he was the first one to believe in me. I guess I should believe in him too and hope for the best. Who knows? There _are_ a few marriages that started as a couple at a very young age. Maybe Jamie and his… friend could be among those few.

"You have to meet her older sister!" Jamie exclaims all of a sudden, interrupting my train of thought. "I'm sure she'll like you, and you two would make such a—"

"Whoa, hold on a second. When did the subject change from Karin to Karin's sister?"

"Just now," he replies naturally.

I laugh at his childish antics. This kid could grow old and never stop having a child's heart. They say that children stop believing in us Guardians at a certain age, but I don't think Jamie will. In fact, his friends have all stopped seeing me by now, while he still does. There must be some exceptions to that rule.

"I appreciate your effort to make me meet a girl, Jamie, but you know that older kids and teenagers can't see me."

"She just might if you help me convince her. You could throw her one of your magical snowballs and—"

"Convince her?" I chuckle. "Who am I, Pitch Black? I can't force her to believe. And even if she _did_ believe, I'm not really interested in a relationship of that kind." I fear my reply has been a bit blunt.

"What? Are you telling me you've never been in love?"

"Never in my 300 years as the Winter Spirit," I say proudly.

Jamie seems shocked by my answer, but the reason is pretty simple. I spent most of those 300 years worrying more about being seen by _everyone_ than only by a single person whom I would've outlived anyway. And now that I'm a Guardian, I still think of it that way, though at least most children can see me now.

"Come on, Jack. At least humor me and come with me today to Karin's so you can meet them both."

I sigh and raise my hands in defeat. "I guess I can do that. But only if you and I have a really good snowball fight with them later on."

"Deal."

* * *

About two hours later, Jamie and I are standing at Karin's porch. The nameplate at the side of the door reads 'The Vinters'. That's not a very common surname in America. I look at Jamie and raise an eyebrow.

"Her family just moved in from Europe," he shrugs.

He knocks somewhat shyly. While we wait, I give him a gentle shove in the shoulder.

"Hey, relax," I tell him, trying to calm him down. "You're just going skating to the lake. It's not like you're getting married today or something like that."

"Married?!" he squeals.

_Ups._ Not exactly the intended effect.

"You get my point," I tell him with a wink.

The door opens, and a cute brunette girl with hazel eyes and a smile that Tooth would love to see from up close greets Jamie with a peck on the cheek. He blushes a bit. Then she looks at me, and her jaw drops.

"Jack Frost?"

I furrow my brow. This doesn't happen very often, even though kids have been seeing me more easily since I became a Guardian—and even then, they need to see my work first, such as a good snow day or snowballs appearing out of nowhere. Besides, she must already be at the age limit in which regular children still can see us.

"You are Jack Frost!" the girl exclaims. "Jamie has told me so much about you!"

I turn to Jamie with slightly narrowed eyes.

"I… may have told her about my adventure with you and the Guardians," he says.

"Of course you did," I reply teasingly.

"Oh, my sister's gonna want to meet you!" the girl says. "I'll leave her a note to join us at the lake when she returns."

And before I can react to what she's just said, she runs back into the house. Jamie and I look at each other, puzzled.

What just happened? First Jamie, and now his friend? What could possibly make them believe that a teenager might see me?

Karin returns within the minute and literally drags Jamie away from the house and towards the road that leads to the lake. I trail closely behind and watch them as they start talking and laughing. Once we arrive, they take some time to put on their skates. I can't help a smile while I hear them chatting. From what I've been listening so far, Karin sounds like she has the heart of a true believer, just like Jamie. They _may_ be for one another, after all.

"They look lovely together," a feminine voice says behind me. "Then again, which couple of kids doesn't look cute at that age?"

I turn around, a bit startled, and find myself staring into a pair of ice blue eyes belonging to a young girl with pale skin and long platinum blonde hair tied up in a ponytail behind her back. And she looks strikingly beautiful…

Wait. Where did that come from?

I quickly push the thought aside. There's no point in trying to start a conversation with a gorgeous girl who can't—

"What? Is there a bug in my face or something?"

I feel my heart skip a beat. There's no one else around us, and she spoke directly at me. In fact, she doesn't seem to be looking _through_ me at all.

"You… you can see me?" I ask disbelievingly.

"Of course I can. Why wouldn't I?" the girl replies with a smile.

This girl can see me! But how? Aside from Jamie, no person older than twelve or thirteen has ever seen me. What makes this girl so special… so different?

"Who _are_ you?" I wonder out loud.

"Oh, sorry. I'm Lizette. Nice to meet you, Jack," she replies, offering her hand.

My bafflement only grows. "How do you…" _know my name?_ I intend to ask, but then I remember that Karin left a note for her sister in which she probably also wrote my name, so I guess that this girl must be Karin's sister.

That doesn't change the fact that this teenager _can_ see me. How in the world can she see me?

"Wow. Jack Frost is speechless. That has to be a first."

_What?!_

"Don't worry," she says, lowering her hand. She doesn't seem offended by my rudeness of not accepting it. "You'll be talking with fluidity again in no time, once things are clear enough for you."

She winks at me and runs off towards the lake, leaving me utterly stunned. _What. Just. Happened?!_

"Hey!" Lizette calls out to me. "Aren't you the Guardian of Fun? 'Cause you seem rather dull right now."

I snap out of it to see her skating gracefully along with the kids. When did she put her skates on? I suppose I've even lost all sense of time and that I've been standing like a fool for a while. She has promised me that things will become clear for me soon enough. Maybe I should trust her? But in any case, she's just challenged me, and that's something that I can't let pass, no matter how confused I may be right now. My fun side takes over, and I lift off from the ground, flying above the lake.

I make it snow a little to add a bit of winter charm to this moment. Then I look down—and watch in horror as Lizette suddenly trips and falls, causing the ice to crack. Jamie and Karin freeze in place, and even from so up high, I can see the look of terror in their faces.

I fly down as fast as I can. I already save my sister from drowning once, and I didn't even have the power that I have now. I _have_ to save those kids.

I break my fall roughly ten feet from the ground and get in an upright position in order to land gently on my feet and fill the cracks with ice to make the lake surface solid again…

…but before my toes can even touch the shattering ice, the cracks disappear.

"Whoa, that was close. Thanks, Jack!" Jamie says, his terrified expression fading away almost instantly.

I nod, though I know that I can't take the credit for this. I look at Lizette who is still on the ground and offer her my hand to help her stand—and I don't fail to notice that her fingertips are touching the ice in a… sort of peculiar way. She takes my hand…

And then I know.

I can sense it.

She has ice powers like me.

My eyes widen while she gives me a soft smile and a shrug.

_Who is she, indeed?_

* * *

**A/N: Rather short chapter, I know, but this is just the prologue. And in case you're wondering, no, that's most certainly not Elsa.  
**

**If you feel just as confused as Jack was, don't worry. Things will be clear for you all too in Chapter 2. Now, don't panic if it takes me about a month to upload it. I'm a bit focused with my other _Frozen_ crossover right now, but I will be updating this story every once in a while until I finish that other fic, and then I'll start updating this one more regularly.**

**Don't forget to review on your way out!**


	2. The Girl with Ice Powers

"Come on, Jamie! Let's see if you can finally beat my high score!" Karin says, once again dragging the boy into the living room.

I chuckle as he turns on the gaming console while she searches for the proper disc to insert in the tray. Jamie told me that they've known each other for only a few months, and that they became friends almost instantly. I guess then that this isn't the first time he's been here. He moves around the place like this is his own house.

We've just returned from the lake after our little 'incident'. I take a look around. The girls' house is quite cozy. There's a lot of blue and white on the walls, which most people would consider not very warm or welcoming, but for me, it's just perfect. Almost like home.

It's not enough to make me forget what happened in the lake, though.

"Ah, a dancing videogame," Lizette says as she passes by me and walks towards the stairs, looking at the younger kids get set in front of the console's motion sensor. "Last week they played a sports game, also with the sensor. My sister is a master in those games. I imagine Jamie prefers other genres like FPSs and stuff like that."

_Actually, he's fonder of the adventure genre but is quite good at this type of games, too_, I say within me. But I can't bring myself to voice my thoughts with her. We've just met, but she already makes me feel uneasy. Well, it's not _she_ who makes me feel like that as much as her _ice powers_. My head is still trying to sort that out. How can a _human_—a _living_ human—have the same powers as me?

"Jaaaack," Lizette singsongs. "I don't bite, you know?"

"What?" I hear myself say, snapping out of it and realizing that she's been waiting for me at the base of the stairway.

"I said, 'Come with me'. The kids could use some privacy, and I've got something to show you."

This time, though I've heard her plain as day, I stay right where I am. Part of me is not entirely willing to trust her, which is weird because, I mean, she's _like_ me. Shouldn't that put my mind at ease?

Lizette looks at me, arms crossed, but with a grin on her face. "You can come with me and learn about your past today, or you can stay down here if you want. Either way—today or in a month or in a year—you _will_ learn about it, because I'm not gonna stop bugging you until you do."

"Okay, first, I find that threat a bit difficult to fulfill—"

"It's not a threat," she says, still smirking.

"—and two, I already know about my past."

"All of it?" She raises an eyebrow.

I'm about to say 'yes', but the way she just asked that question makes me hesitate. _Do_ I know everything about my past? The only thing I saw when I touched my tooth box was that I had a family and a sister whom I saved. But the more I think about it, I realize that I actually _don't_ know all about that. For example, when was her birthday? When was _my_ birthday? I was 17, so I probably was into girls already. Or was I?

After mulling it over for a few moments, I come to the conclusion that my past is still a mystery to me.

I start walking towards the stairs.

Lizette smiles and hurries upstairs, leaving me to follow her.

As my steps take me closer to the upper floor, I notice the series of pictures hanging from the wall. They are arranged from oldest to newest—and by oldest, I mean as old as the first photographs in black and white. I feel like I'm taking a trip through history, watching children become parents and then grandparents as their own children have their own sons and daughters. So many different faces…

…except for one.

Lizette's.

It's not exactly _her_ in each picture, but it seems like her face has been 'copy-pasted' generation after generation, with only a few subtle differences each time. I know children resemble their parents in one way or another, but _this_ is ridiculous. Shouldn't she look _way_ different from her great-great-great-great-grandmother?

There's only one open door in the upper floor, right at the end of the stairway, and right next to the very last picture, where Lizette and Karin appear with their parents. It seems like they're a lovely and loving family. The girls look only a bit younger, like it was taken about a year ago—and again, Lizette and her mother look like they could be twins. She looks like she could be a twin to the girl I saw in the first photograph, for crying out loud! Maybe with less prominent cheekbones…

"My family is from Norway," I hear Lizette saying beside me. "My grandparents moved to the States and settled in Wisconsin when World War II broke out. We lived there until my dad was promoted as the new director of his company's branch office in Philadelphia a few months ago. But you don't need to know that, do you?"

"I don't know," I reply. "Do I?"

"No, not really. You _do_ want to ask something, though."

Is she a mind reader or something? 'Cause that last sentence was more of a statement than a question. And she is right.

"How?" That's all I can manage to articulate, but that lone word carries more weight than any more elaborate question would.

Lizette smiles. I have mixed feelings about that smile. It's so bright and earnest, and yet I can't help but feel like she's hiding some dark secret behind it. I'm usually not this distrustful of people, but she…

She… looks so beautiful when she smiles.

Oh boy. What's happening to me?

"I was born with the gift," she explains. "My family's had it for centuries. The funny thing about it is, it only manifests on the women, and only in one per each new generation. Who knows? Maybe it's some kind of mutant gene or something like that."

"Mutant?" I snort. "What, like the X-Men?"

"Why not?" she shrugs.

"Well, I don't know about that. Sometimes there are things that science can't explain. I was brought back as a spirit with winter powers after my death. How do you explain that?"

Lizette shrugs and smiles again. Then she walks back into her room and picks up something from her bed.

"Close your eyes," she tells me, not turning back to look at me.

"I'm sorry?"

"It's a surprise. Don't you like surprises?"

"Only if _I'm_ the one who's giving it."

"Of course. I should've expected that from the Guardian of Fun," she chuckles. "Will you humor me and close your eyes for a few seconds or not?"

"Fine," I sigh and close my eyes alright.

"Don't cheat, Jack Frost!" I hear her say somewhere close to me.

"The thought never crossed my mind," I say, grinning mischievously.

"Yeah, right." I hear footsteps approaching. "Okay, open them now."

I comply. The first thing I see is Lizette with her hands raised towards me, palms closed. I raise an eyebrow. "Seriously?"

"Oh, come on. This is supposed to be fun!"

"For you, maybe," I reply, pointing to her left hand. She opens her palm. Empty.

"Just a little," she giggles.

I roll my eyes and point my finger at her right hand. This time, she produces a necklace with a large pendant seemingly made of… ice?

"Did you… make that?" I ask disbelievingly, observing it carefully. The electric blue ice looks flawless, like a perfectly polished gemstone. It reminds me of that blue diamond featured in _Titanic_. It might as well be the prop used in that film, except that this one has a white snowflake clearly visible within the ice.

"I wish I had," Lizette replies. "It's another thing that's been in the family for a long time."

"Well, it's beautiful," I admit. I consider myself somewhat of an artist, what with the intricate frost patters I tend to leave in my wake, but this… this is a masterpiece of art.

"It's yours now," Lizette says, offering it to me.

"What?" Apparently I've been asking that question more times in the past few hours than in my entire life. "No, I-I can't take it. It your heirloom. Besides, I'm not the jewelry t—"

"This has been meant for you since its very creation," she cuts me off. "My family was only tasked with its safekeeping. Please, take it."

Does she mean to say that her family has been aware of my existence for a long time? How come I never learned of them?

Hesitantly, I finally shake my head in utter disbelief as I lean my staff on the wall and reach out for it. "You know, you promised everything would be clear for me, and all I keep getting are more—"

I don't get to finish the sentence. The instant my fingertips come in contact with the pendant, I'm blinded by a bright flash of white light. I feel dizzy, and my head feels like it's about to explode with the biggest headache I've ever had. The light gives way to a series of images that flash in front of my eyes, but I can't make heads or tails of them.

I am aware that I'm falling to the ground, but I can't do anything about it. I hit the floor. Then I hear Lizette shushing me and feel her hands holding my head, as if trying to help me calm down. Am I having a seizure or something? I look at her, but I can barely make her out. My vision is blurry.

"Don't worry, Jack," she tells me, smiling widely. "It will all be over soon."

That smile is the last thing I see before everything goes black…

* * *

**_300 years ago_**

Eight years. Eight years of doing the only thing he knew how to do—and that was only by instinct.

Because the Moon hadn't even bothered to tell him about his mission. All he had disclosed to him was his name.

_Jack Frost._

He still remembered the night when he first came into this world… and how the joy and fun that came with the discovery of his abilities faded away when he also learned that no one could see him. Apparently, he was a spirit, and people couldn't see spirits. It simply was the way things were.

Then why did it feel wrong to him? Why did he long so badly to be seen by someone—by _anyone_? Was he supposed to ignore it for all eternity? Had he been born in a lake just to be the _lone_ spirit of winter? The coldest season of the year had seemingly introduced itself without any help in its due time for thousands of years. So, why the need for an embodiment of winter?

He was done trying to figure out the reason behind his existence. He just did what he felt compelled to do by nature.

Winter had already begun in the South, and right now he was flying over the only two places besides the South Pole where he could make it snow at least a little: the southern tip of the Americas, and a handful islands in the Pacific Ocean—or more like the southern regions of said islands.

Bringing winter to the South was so dull…

Fortunately, he wasn't _forced_ to make it snow everywhere he went nor was he bound to stay in a specific place to make it snow, and so, once he finished his duty, he flew straight to the North, to Norway. He hovered over the Scandinavian country for a moment before plummeting down towards the small kingdom. He slowed down and took in the view of the fjord and the greenery around the town.

There were many lovely things about Arendelle, but there was one in particular that piqued Jack's interest, and it wasn't exactly some_thing_ but some_one_. And that someone would probably be asleep in her room—so long as her little sister didn't wake her up to play.

He flew towards one of the castle's windows and peeked inside. There were two girls in bed, one of them sound asleep, and the other quite awake, fiddling and staring at the ceiling with an expression of boredom in her face. Jack chuckled. Of the few times he'd been here, he'd always found little Princess Anna like this. She was a restless kid who only wanted to have some fun, occasionally in the least expected or appropriate times.

And conveniently enough for her, in that moment, the northern lights began illuminating the town, giving her just the right excuse for this night. Jack saw how the girl's expression brightened, and true enough, she hopped out of her bed and tiptoed to her sister's bedside.

"Elsa. Pssst!" she whispered, and without waiting for her sister's response, she climbed up onto the bed and sat right on top of her sister. "Elsa! Wake up, wake up, wake up!" she said, jumping on her and shaking her.

"Anna, go back to sleep," the oldest of the two princesses said, groaning and barely opening her eyes.

"I just can't," Anna sighed and flopped down on top of her sister, throwing her arms wide. "The sky is awake, so I'm awake. So we have to play!" she said dramatically.

"Go play by yourself!" Elsa shoved her off the bed, and Anna landed on the floor with no grace at all. Had anyone else seen the scene, they would've thought that maybe both sisters didn't get along too well, but Jack knew otherwise. Elsa loved her sister, but she wasn't as spirited as Anna, and she definitely didn't share the same enthusiasm for playing at such a high hour of the night as her.

Anna, however, wasn't easily deterred. She climbed back onto the bed and, with her tiny hand, opened one of Elsa's eyes.

"Do you wanna build a snowman?" she asked.

Elsa threw off the blankets and hopped out of bed almost as soon as those words came out of Anna's mouth, and Jack knew that Anna had hit her weak spot—yet again. This wasn't the first time Anna used that trick on Elsa, but it always worked. Anna grabbed Elsa's hand and rushed out of the room while Jack flew through the closed window and followed them both. That was another advantage of being a spirit; he didn't have to rely on doors and windows being open for him to enter somewhere.

They raced down the stairs and through the empty halls until they reached the throne room. Elsa quickly closed the door before Jack could come through, but once more, it wasn't enough to stop the spirit from getting into the room. He passed through the wood and was on the other side in less than a second. He landed on the chandelier and looked down just in time to watch Elsa as she began creating a snowball out of nowhere that hovered between her hands.

"Ready?" Elsa said, to which Anna nodded excitedly, eyes wide with wonder. Then, Elsa threw the snowball high into the air, and it exploded just before it reached the ceiling, showering snow down on them.

"This is amazing!" Anna shouted her arms outstretched toward the ceiling as she bounded around the room.

"Watch this!" Elsa said and stomped the floor. Ice emerged instantly, spreading out from beneath her foot across the entire floor. Anna started to slip, sliding across the room, but she kept smiling as if it were the funniest thing ever.

And for Jack, it was. He enjoyed watching children from all over the world having fun during winter. In spite of himself, it made him feel like he _did_ have a purpose. And even though this wasn't his doing, it still brought a smile to his face. As the snow piled up on the floor and the two children began rolling the snow into balls of different sizes, he reminisced of the day he first saw Elsa two years ago.

It had been under similar circumstances, with the only main difference being that it had been during winter instead of summer. He'd made it snow a lot that day, and he'd seen when the two sisters came out to the courtyard and began playing in the snow. Such was a common sight for Jack whenever he went to the countryside, but seeing children from _royalty_ do such a thing was something that didn't happen every day, so he'd decided to stay and watch them for a while.

Elsa, then only six years old, had managed to make a snowman with a rather deformed head while a three-year-old Anna sat waiting for it to be finished. The girls had named him Olaf. But the snowman only lasted for a few minutes. While they were both doing snow angels beside it, a distracted servant passed by and accidentally stepped on 'Olaf', destroying it. When Anna noticed it, she had begun crying, but Elsa had quickly comforted her by telling her that she'd fix it for her. Jack had frowned, believing that she had meant to say that she'd _build_ another one, as _rebuilding_ Olaf would be impossible now.

He'd almost fallen backwards when he saw the little girl gather the fallen pile of snow and turn it again into the funny little snowman with only a few waves of her hands.

Elsa had ice powers just like him! How could such a thing be possible?!

While such a thing had left him utterly baffled, Anna had obviously loved seeing Elsa doing it. She hadn't seem surprised by her sister's magic, so Jack had deduced that she'd known about it for some time, probably as far as she could remember. Needless to say, and even though Jack still couldn't understand it, he'd hoped against all hope that the girl with ice powers would be able to see him, as they had something in common. He had approached and greeted her…

…but Elsa, just like every other person in the world, had simply passed through him as she and Anna returned inside the castle.

For some reason, Jack had felt even more dismayed by her not being able to see him than he had with everyone else, even though he knew he should've expected that. And yet, the prospect of becoming friends with a little kid who had the same powers that he had had made him feel a spark of hope. Perhaps if he kept trying enough, he'd eventually find a way to make her see him. And so, he'd kept visiting Arendelle whenever he could, each time with a new idea on how to achieve his goal.

Thus far, his efforts had all been in vain. But he couldn't stop trying. He was just too curious to forget about it, and he felt almost like he and the girl shared a connection. He liked to think of her as a little sister with whom she could one day play, both of them using their abilities to have lots of fun. For some reason, he had a childish heart, after all.

"Hi, I'm Olaf," he heard Elsa say with a slightly different voice, which brought him back to reality. "And I like warm hugs."

He saw Anna rush towards the snowman and throw her arms around it. "I love you, Olaf!"

Jack chuckled again. In two years, they had changed not the name nor the shape of the snowman, and Anna didn't seem to grow tired of it. The two sisters made him laugh a lot whenever he came to visit them. They had so many creative ways to have fun. Skating with the snowman, sliding down a pile of snow, jumping into another and then another as Elsa kept forming higher and higher mounds—

He noticed that Anna was getting faster with those jumps. That couldn't be good. Elsa's smile started to fade.

"Wait! Slow down!" she yelled. But her sister kept going. The snow mounds were getting higher and higher and Anna was going faster and faster. Jack could see the worry in Elsa's blue eyes when she slipped. Anna jumped again, oblivious to the fact that her sister was on the floor. Unable to stop her, Elsa did the only thing she could do.

She shot a burst of her magic.

"Anna!" she cried, desperately trying to catch her. But her aim was off, and the burst struck Anna in the head. Anna fell to the ground like a ragdoll, landing in a thin layer of snow. Elsa gasped, scrambling to her feet. She rushed toward her while Jack flew down. It had all happened so fast that not even he had had enough time to react.

"Anna," Elsa said, holding her in her arms. A lock of Anna's strawberry blonde hair turned white. "Mama! Papa!" she screamed.

She hugged Anna tightly, visibly afraid of what had just happened. And suddenly, the once pristine ice crystallized and cracked, turning to frost. It grew rapidly, climbing up the walls and onto the ceiling. Jack's jaw dropped.

Her magic was reacting to her emotions. That was something he'd never seen before. She was afraid, and her ice was reflecting it. He tried placing a hand on her shoulder to soothe her, but it was pointless. It went right through her.

"You're okay, Anna," she said, her voice shaking. "I got you."

The doors burst open, shattering the ice that had sealed them shut. Jack saw the King and Queen of Arendelle stare at the scene, horrified.

"Elsa, what have you done?" the King said. They hurried toward the girls. "This is getting out of hand!"

"I-it was an accident," Elsa said then stared down at Anna sadly. "I'm sorry, Anna."

The Queen took Anna into her arms and gasped. "She's ice cold!"

"I know where we have to go," the King told her and ran out of the room. Jack followed him, as there was nothing else he could do to help.

They reached the library where the King began searching desperately for a book. He found it and opened it, and a map fell from it. Jack tried to read both the book and the map, but it was written in a language he didn't understand. It didn't matter anyway, for the King closed the book just as soon as he had taken it, picked up the map, and rushed to the castle gates where the Queen was already waiting for him on a horse, still holding Anna protectively. The King mounted another horse, with Elsa sitting in front of him, and both royals left the castle in a hurry.

The horses galloped through the silent town, and Jack followed after them closely. As they raced through the town and into the forest, the King's horse left a trail of frost behind them. Anna was in a very delicate state. The horses didn't stop until they reached a small amphitheater-like place with steam geysers that made it warm and humid. Jack rested upon one of the few rocks that weren't covered in moss while the royal family climbed off their horses and walked towards the center of the 'amphitheater'.

"Please, help!" the King shouted. "It's… my daughter!"

A low rumble echoed throughout the place. The rocks jostled back and forth and rolled toward the royal family. The Queen held onto Anna tightly, the girl wrapped in a warm blanket. Elsa stood beside her father, looking frightened. The rocks drew closer, and suddenly, they popped open, revealing themselves to be living, human-looking creatures with large ears and noses, grass-like hair, and glowing crystals hanging from their necks. They stared up at the King and Queen, surprised.

"It's the King!" one of them said, astonished. The rest of the diminutive… beings began murmuring among themselves. Jack saw as they all made way for one of them to approach the family. Said 'living rock' looked much older and had longer hair and several crystals hanging from his neck, as well as a moss cape.

"Trolls?!" he heard a voice to his right—a child's voice. He caught a glimpse of a blonde boy with a baby reindeer but didn't pay attention to them. He was more concerned with what was happening with Anna. What the boy said, though, ringed in his ears. _Trolls._ Jack had already seen other weird-looking beings in the past nine years, like those guys who called themselves 'Guardians', but this was the first time he saw trolls.

"Your Majesty," the Elder Troll said, bowing slightly. The King knelt down beside Elsa as the troll gently took her hand. "Born with the power, or cursed?"

Jack's attention returned to the royal family when the troll raised that question. The answer to it was something Jack definitely wanted to learn.

"Uh, born," the King said quickly. "And they're getting stronger."

_Born, eh?_ Jack thought. _So you _have_ always had them. But _how_?_

The Elder Troll turned to the Queen. He gestured for her to bring Anna to him. The Queen did so, kneeling down and holding her daughter out for him. The Troll rested his hand on Anna's forehead.

"You were lucky it wasn't her heart," he said. "The heart is not so easily changed, but the head can be persuaded."

"Do what you must," the King told him.

"I recommend we remove all magic," the Elder Troll, again placing his hand on Anna's forehead. A few images of her and Elsa playing in the snow inside the throne room appeared when he lifted it. "Even memories of magic, to be safe. But don't worry; I leave the fun."

The images changed drastically as he spoke, displaying both sisters playing in the open during a snowy day of winter, before the Elder Troll turned them into a swirling ball of magic and placed them into Anna's head. The little girl stirred and smiled.

"She will be okay," the Troll announced, sighing in relief.

"But she won't remember I have powers?" Elsa asked, concerned.

"It's for the best," the King said, resting his hand on her shoulder. Elsa stared at her hands.

"Listen to me, Elsa. Your power will only grow," the Elder Troll said, waving his stony hand and creating beautiful blue images in the sky with his magic. "There is beauty in it, but also great danger." The blue figures suddenly turned a deep red. Elsa gasped. "You must learn to control it. Fear will be your enemy."

Elsa clung to her father in fear, and the King hugged her tightly.

"No," he said. "We'll protect her. She can learn to control it, I'm sure. Until then, we'll lock the gates. We'll reduce the staff. We will limit her contact with people and keep her powers hidden from everyone… including Anna."

An overwhelming sadness crossed Elsa's face, and Jack could understand why. In other words, she would become a prisoner in her own home, alone and completely isolated.

Now more than ever, he felt the need to be seen, not to satisfy his own desire but to be able to comfort this poor child. The power they shared could very well be the only thing that would help her feel less lonely if only she could see him and talk to him and become friends with him. Besides, he could help her gain control of her powers, wherever they had come from.

Suddenly, he had a bigger purpose than bringing winter to the world. At least he thought of it that way. And thus, as the royal family left the small valley of living rocks and he followed them back to the castle, he resolved to do whatever was necessary to make Elsa see him, not for his own good but for hers.

_Whatever it takes._

* * *

**A/N: And that was Chapter 2! Way longer than the first one, I know, but as it turned out, describing that five-minute-long scene from _Frozen _required more words than I thought possible. ****BTW**, I hope you didn't get too confused by that POV change in the story. But since the events from the past will—at some point—need the perspective of multiple characters, I decided to return to a third-person POV. Don't worry; I'll keep writing the events of the present In Jack's POV.

**Now, this, along with Chapter 1, are meant to be sort of like my 'pilot' chapters. I plan to keep updating this story once every two or three weeks—since I'm also writing another crossover and have to keep updating that one as well—but I might feel inclined to do it sooner if I get enough reviews in a shorter period of time. I know it's a new story and that my warning may've scared a few people, but please, give it a chance and tell me what you think about it once you've finished reading. As you can see, I've already diverged from regular Jelsa fics by changing one simple fact: Elsa _can't_ see Jack. [SPOILER ALERT: That is gonna be one huge part of the story, though she will eventually see him... it's just not gonna happen soon.]**

**Anyway, since I've already taken to replying to my reviewers while writing 'Ice Fury' (that's my other crossover, FYI), I think I'll keep doing the same thing with this story, so:**

**********_Guest:_ Oh, come on! You don't want me to spoil the mystery for you, do you? What if her family took Elsa's powers away? *awkward silence* Okay, I think I've already made it too obvious with this chapter, so why bother denying it, right? Yeah, that's Elsa's descendant. Now it is up to you to decide if her family's intentions are good or not so much. And yes, as you can see, the story will take place both in the present and in the past. I hope you liked this chapter. Thanks for reviewing!  
_letitgo0:_ Thank you! I'm glad you liked teen Jamie.  
_Ghostpen94:_ He is, isn't he? Hahaha, let it go. LOL! Thanks for your review!  
_Nik . liang:_ Like I said above, why bother denying it? Yes, she is Elsa's descendant. But what might her agenda be...? Thanks for reviewing! (I had to separate your profile name 'cause the site won't let me leave it as it is; I don't know why. Sorry.)****  
**

**I have finals next week, and I still have to upload two more chapters for 'Ice Fury' according to my updates calendar (yeah, I've actually made a calendar for my updates), so next chapter won't be online until the week after the next... unless—as I've already said—I get enough reviews, encouraging or otherwise. Feel free to make any comments you'd like to make.**

**Just don't forget to review on your way out! Have a nice weekend!**


	3. Yours to Hold

**A/N: Before anything else, I'd like to apologize to you all. In my previous author's note, I told you that I would possibly update sooner if I received enough reviews encouraging me to do so. That was an arrogant comment and not the right thing to do or say. A dear friend of mine made me saw that I was wrong and that I was loosing the main focus of being a writer, which is to write stories just for the sake of doing it. It's not about the reviews; it's about having fun with creating something and sharing it with others. So, again, I apologize for what I said, and I promise I'll keep writing this and any other story I come up with just because I can and because I enjoy doing it. (And thank you, Fer, for helping me regain my focus.)  
**

**That being said, I also want to clarify that I didn't take this long to update because of a lack of reviews but because I had some trouble trying to get this chapter right. You see, its title comes from a song of the same name by Skillet that I'm featuring in here. Adding the lyrics of the song into the narrative was simply a bit trickier than I thought it would be. But finally, here it is, Chapter 3 for all of you. I hope you like it.**

**By the way, if you'd like to listen to the song before reading, I made a video with it. Well, it's actually two videos; one featuring the 'original' version of the song, and the other featuring the acoustic version. You can Google it using the name "Yours To Hold: My Jelsa Tribute", or you can follow these links (no spaces):  
_Original Version:_ www. youtube watch?v=g0NoEZRBbEk  
_Acoustic Version:_ www. youtube watch?v=oFFe24PKdSc  
**

**And without further ado, enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

The King's orders were carried out almost as soon as he and his family returned to the castle. The staff was indeed reduced, though the King made sure that those servants who were let go ended up with good jobs in the town, and he promised that the Crown would keep looking after them and their families as a reward for their years of service. The King's orders to keep the gates permanently closed became official within the day. And Elsa was given a new room in a different wing of the castle, away from Anna.

Preparing the room for the older of the two Princesses took less than a week during which Anna slept in her parents' room under the excuse that she had caught a cold and that they wanted to keep a close eye on her. Thus Elsa was left alone in the room she used to share with her sister… and which would soon just be Anna's room.

Jack spent every minute of those days with Elsa, trying to find a way to let her know that he was there for her, but it wasn't an easy thing to do. Even while she _could_ see his handiwork, he couldn't see _him_, and after two unsuccessful attempts to use winter magic to get her attention—the first time by making a snowman appear out of nowhere, and the second by covering the mirror with frost and trying to write his name on it—but which only resulted in her believing that her powers were getting out of control again, he decided to wait until winter to try that approach again. In the meantime, he kept watching over her while she was awake and as she slept. Even if she didn't know he was here, he would stay by her side during this ordeal.

**_I see you standing here,  
But you're so far away.  
Starving for your attention,  
You don't even know my name._**

The day finally came when Elsa was to change from one room to the other. She left the room before the servants arrived to move her pieces of furniture to her new room, which they did in a little under an hour. Jack stayed with her as she waited at the entrance of the new room until the moving was done. Elsa then walked slowly inside, her head lowered and her eyes watery. She was halfway through the threshold when Anna appeared on the hallway. Elsa looked at her with a sad look for what would probably be the last time…

…and without another word, she closed the door, thus beginning her life of isolation and misery.

Anna looked heartbroken as she walked away, and of course Jack felt bad for her as well. His main focus, however, was centered on the Princess on the other side of that closed door, so he went through it and found a little girl lying on her bed, sobbing with her face buried in a pillow that was slowly getting covered in frost. While she hadn't been cursed with her powers, she was probably cursing them anyway for separating her from everything and everyone she loved. If only she could see him and know that she wasn't alone… that there was someone she couldn't harm even if she tried to…

**_You're going through so much,  
But I know that I could be the one to hold you._**

The days went by, and Elsa grew more or less accustomed to her new lonely room. Jack eventually needed to return to the South to resume his duty, but even as he left, he couldn't help but to look back to look at her one more time before leaving and tell her one more thing, even if she wouldn't listen.

_**"**__**Every single day, I find it hard to say  
I could be yours alone.  
You will see someday that all along the way  
I was yours to hold, I was yours to hold."**_

* * *

The time to bring winter to the North finally came after a few months that felt like an eternity to Jack. He wasted no time introducing the coldest season of the year, and then he flew to Arendelle as fast as he could. He arrived at the castle, found the window that belonged to Elsa's room, and went through it. Elsa had apparently just woken up, but already Anna was knocking at her door, insistently asking her to come out and play and build a snowman. Elsa seemed torn between her desire to be near her sister and the need to keep her safe from her powers. She closed her eyes and turned her back to the door.

"Go away, Anna!" she yelled.

"Okay, bye," Jack could hear the muffled, disheartened voice of the youngest Princess on the other side. Elsa shed a tear as Anna's footsteps faded away. Jack wondered how many more times had Anna come here in the past few months to ask her to join her in playing. He sighed.

**_I see you walking by,  
Your hair always hiding your face.  
I wonder why you've been hurting,  
I wish I had some way to say._**

"You don't have to keep doing this, Elsa," he said. "Remember what the Elder Troll told you. There's beauty in your power, just like there's beauty in winter. Just look outside your window and see it for yourself."

Jack's heart skipped a bit when Elsa actually looked up, walked towards the window, and sat on the windowsill to look outside—just like he'd told her to. Had she finally heard him?

He approached her and sat by her side. She looked fascinated by all the snow covering the ground. Perhaps she was glad to know that at least _that_ hadn't been her doing. Jack smiled. If she _could_ see that what he did was beautiful, perhaps she would now have a more open mind and remember what things were like before… well, before the incident with Anna.

"See? You could do the same," he said. "Just let it go. Let it be free again. Forget about what happened. The past is in the past."

Elsa leaned on the wooden edge of the window—and instantly, it became covered in frost, along with part of the window itself. Elsa looked at it and gasped, her look of wonder replaced by one of fear… again.

"No, no, no, it's okay," Jack said, desperately trying to calm her down. "Don't panic. You just need to learn to control it to make prettier things, like this."

He touched the window with the tip of his staff, covering it with his own frost designs. But Elsa didn't see them, as she had already run back to her bed where she now lay curled up with her eyes closed. Jack sat on the edge of the bed and tried to comfort her, but she didn't listen. And when he tried to put a hand on her shoulder, it went right through her as it had many other times before. He shook his head.

**_You're going through so much.  
Don't you know that I could be the one to hold you?_**

The King came into the room in that moment and, finding the window covered in frost and Elsa sobbing in the bed, sat down by her side. "Is everything alright, sweetheart?" he asked, stroking her hair.

"No, it's not," Elsa replied. "I can't control it. I'll never leave this room."

"Yes, you will," the King said, sounding sure of himself. Elsa looked up.

"How do you know?"

"Because I have something special for you—something that will help you to keep your magic under control."

Elsa's face lit up with hope. She followed her dad to another room where her mother awaited sitting by the fireplace with a small box in her hands. The King took the box and opened it before showing Elsa what was inside. The little girl frowned.

"These are just gloves," she said.

_Gloves?_ Jack repeated in his mind. He peeked inside the box. Indeed, there was a pair of white gloves in it. _How is this going to keep her magic under control?_

"Ah, but not just any gloves," the King said. "You see, these are special gloves. If a person wears them, he or she will be unable to use their magic, no matter how hard they try."

Elsa gave him a skeptic look. Jack knew she was a smart girl. She wouldn't fall for something so ridiculous so easily.

"You don't believe me?" her father said. "Why don't you try one of them on and see with your own eyes how effective they are?"

The little Princess hesitated, seemingly still not convinced… but she finally relented and took one of the gloves from the box. She slipped her right hand into it and tried to shoot her magic at the fire.

Nothing.

"See?" the King said. "Now you won't freeze everything you touch. And all you have to do for them to keep working is to constantly repeat these words: 'Conceal it; don't feel it; don't let it show'."

"'Conceal it; don't feel it; don't let it show'," Elsa repeated. She smiled and looked at her father. "Will I be able to play with Anna now?"

The King's smile of reassurance vanished. He looked at her wife for a moment before replying, "Oh, I'm… I'm sorry, Elsa. You can't play with her yet."

"B-b-but the gloves—"

"The gloves will help," the King replied, "but holding back so much magic also requires sacrifice. The gloves must sense that you're trying to protect Anna by staying away from her. Eventually, you'll be able to keep your magic under control without the gloves, but until then, you need to keep your distance, just to be safe."

_What?!_ Jack thought. That had to be the lamest excuse in history. Even the King sounded unsure about this. There was nothing magical about those gloves; it was all in Elsa's mind! How could she expect to _learn_ how to control her powers if she _repressed_ them?

"Elsa, I know they're your parents and that you love them, but you can't trust them on this!" he yelled. "They're wrong! If you accept what they're trying to make you do, you truly _won't_ be able to get near Anna ever again. Remember that fear is your enemy. You must fight it, not pretend that it's not there!"

The little girl looked down and nodded, raising her left hand for her dad to put the remaining glove on it. Exasperated, Jack 'kicked' a nearby chair, though his foot obviously went through it. If being locked up inside her room was bad, this was even worse. The day would come when she wouldn't have gloves on her hands for one reason or another, and what would happen then? This wasn't the answer! He could teach her how to control her powers, if she could only _see him!_

**_I'm stretching but you're just out of reach…_**

"Now, say the words again with me," the King said after he covered her daughter's hand with the glove. "'Conceal it'…"

"…'Don't feel it'," Elsa said, and then both of them completed the phrase, "'Don't let it show'."

"Well done, Elsa. Now go back to your room and try to read one of those books you've been trying to read," the King told the girl. She obeyed and walked slowly back to her room. Jack was about to follow her, but then he heard the ruler sigh and say in a low voice, "What have I done?"

"You are trying to help her, Agdar," the Queen tried to reassure him.

"I just _lied_ to my daughter, Idun!" the King replied, trying to keep his voice down. "What father does that to her children?"

"What father has a daughter with those powers?" the Queen argued. "This isn't something any parent is prepared for. We're trying to do our best here, given the circumstances. I don't like stripping her of her childhood either, but we don't have any choice." She approached him and took his hand between hers. "Remember what we agreed on?"

The King nodded. "She _has_ to believe that those gloves can help her, at least until she's old enough to rationalize things better and actually start controlling her powers." He embraced his wife tightly while Jack paced restlessly around the room, waving his staff around as if trying to hit something.

"No, no, no! This is all _wrong_!" he yammered as if these two rulers could hear him. "She needs to learn _now_! This is ridiculous! This is stupid! This is—"

_This is perfect._

Jack managed to calm down as realization dawned on him. This definitely wasn't the solution, but it brought him a new opportunity.

He flew back to Elsa's room and found her reading a book, just like her father had told her to. She didn't look too happy, but she did seem to have a bit more hope than before. Jack knew that every book she'd tried to read had been completely frozen and ruined, but not anymore. Elsa was probably thinking that, if the gloves were working with the books, they would also be the solution that would allow her to be with Anna soon. Of course, that wasn't true, but for Jack, it also meant another thing.

If Elsa believed her magic was being repressed, then he would be able to use his own winter magic without her believing that it was her doing—and thus, she would understand that there was someone else capable of doing it.

And then, she just _might_ see him.

Jack leaned on his staff. This wasn't the best option, but he had run out of ideas. For now, he'd play along with what the King and Queen had planned and give Elsa some time to get used to not seeing ice and snow covering whatever she touched or appearing wherever she was. The day would finally come when he'd be able to help her.

**_And I'll be waiting for the right time,  
For the day I catch your eye,  
To let you know that I'm yours to hold._**

"But that doesn't mean I'll leave you alone, Elsa," he said. "I'll be here. I'll always be here for you. I promise."

* * *

Unfortunately, Jack's plan didn't work out too well. If anything, two years later, Elsa only seemed to be even more scared when Jack tried to cover the mirror with frost to write on it again while she was sitting in her bed. She apparently thought that her powers were becoming too much for the gloves to handle. As a result of this sudden attack of panic, she'd accidentally shot a burst of ice on the mirror—from her _foot_. Jack even _felt_ the shot go through him before hitting the glass.

He was baffled.

Of course, she had grown up a bit more by now, and the gloves no longer fit her, which only served to give her even more reason to believe that they couldn't help her anymore. The King told her that all she needed was a new pair of gloves, which she received a few days later.

Jack didn't dare risk scaring her a second time.

He couldn't understand this fear of hers. For some reason, he kept thinking of it as unnatural, almost as if something or someone else was convincing her that every magical thing that happened and was winter-related was her fault. He didn't want to give up on helping her just yet, but he had to admit that this was beyond him. Whenever he thought he had everything figured out, something new happened.

_**Every single day, I find it hard to say  
I could be yours alone…**_

* * *

One day, shortly after her 12th birthday, Jack came to visit her once more. She was sitting against the wall next to her bedroom door, drawing something on a large sketchbook while listening to Anna who was playing right outside the room, as if tempting Elsa to come outside. Jack chuckled at the little girl's antics. She was quite stubborn and persistent, perhaps even more so than him. Plus, she didn't seem to lose hope. He, on the other hand, had already given up on trying to be seen by Elsa. In fact, he wondered at times why he kept doing this knowing that it was a complete waste of time.

Though occasionally, it wasn't. On the extremely rare occasion, he'd get to see Elsa smile. This was one of them.

"What have you got there that has you so happy?" he asked, floating just above her head.

His jaw dropped when he saw the drawing. It was a flawless depiction of a palace—a blue palace consisting of several spires surrounding two large towers centered around the hexagonal shape of a snowflake.

He didn't know she had this much talent. Was she a natural drawer or had she been taking lessons? And it wasn't just the one drawing. On the same page, there were many different angles of the palace with notes regarding any optional changes to be made or possible complications that could arise while building it. This was more than just a drawing. This was the work of an architect, and a really good one at that. He also read the three words on the top right corner of the page: 'My Ice Palace'.

"Ice?" he wondered out loud. "What, are you actually planning on building it?"

"One day I _will_ build this," she said, sighing. "Once I control my powers…"

Her voice trailed off, and Jack just stared at her. That was one other reason why he didn't stop visiting Elsa. From time to time, she would speak out loud to herself just after he told her or asked her something, and while he knew better than to get his hopes up, he still enjoyed daydreaming of the day when they would actually have a two-sided conversation… when they would become friends. After all, he still thought of her as a little sister whom he had to look after, though he had no idea of where that feeling came from.

Suddenly, he noticed that there was frost building up on the wall. _Oh, no._

Elsa also noticed it. She jumped and screamed in horror, tossing the sketchbook aside. She called for her parents, and within the minute, the King and Queen arrived at Elsa's room. They closed the door behind them after they walked inside and stared at the wall. Meanwhile, Elsa paced around the room, visibly frightened.

"I'm scared!" she exclaimed on the verge of tears. "It's getting stronger!"

"Getting upset only makes it worse. Calm down," the King told her, reaching out for her lovingly. But Elsa would have none of it.

"No! Don't touch me!" she yelled, making the Queen gasp and the King flinch. This was the first time that Elsa told them to stay away from her, and apparently realizing what she had said, added, "Please, I don't want to hurt you."

Both rules looked discouraged, and Jack couldn't blame them. Well, he _could_; after all, it had been their idea to keep repressing Elsa's powers instead of helping her gain control over them. But after four years of watching them suffer just as much as Elsa and Anna, Jack had come to pity them. He remembered what the Queen had said once; this wasn't something any parent was prepared for. This wasn't something _anyone_—and that included the Winter Spirit himself—was prepared for… except maybe for the trolls. The Elder Troll _had_ known that this would happen.

Once more, Jack felt frustrated and helpless. He shook his head. In four years, he had been nothing more than a passive observer, unable to do anything to help. But in spite of everything, a small part of him still refused to give up… to stop believing…

_**You **_**will**_** see someday that all along the way  
I was yours to hold, I was yours to hold…**_

* * *

With the passing of time, little Elsa grew into a beautiful young lady who would've captivated many a man's heart—if she had allowed herself to leave the castle and meet new people.

It didn't take her long to figure out that the gloves could only do so much after that incident in her room, but she didn't stop using them. She had come to accept them as a part of her life, even if they weren't as useful as her parents had tried to make her believe. She'd also decided to live in seclusion and isolation willingly, fearing that she would be a danger to others.

Ironically enough, once she accepted all this, her powers stopped manifesting.

Jack couldn't understand it, but there was nothing he could do about it, other than keep visiting her. One of those visits coincided one summer with the departure of the King and Queen who would go on a two-week journey to a neighboring kingdom to discuss the renewal of some kind of treaty or something like that. In an uncharacteristic display of trust, they told Elsa they'd leave her in charge until their return. Elsa had been learning everything a princess should know about ruling a kingdom, of course, but she seemed scared regardless just to be near people, let alone to _rule_ in her parent's stead.

He was by her side when she and her parents bid each other farewell. She looked worried.

"Do you _have_ to go?" she asked them as she curtsied.

"We've talked about this, Elsa," the Queen said. "You already have everything under control. We know you can do this."

Elsa didn't seem convinced. The King tried to embrace her, but she flinched slightly. She still wouldn't let people touch her. Her father sighed.

"We love you, my dear daughter," he said. "Don't ever forget that. And don't worry. You'll be fine, Elsa."

Elsa nodded. "Thank you." She hesitated before adding, "And I love you, too."

Both the King and Queen smiled, and then they left. Jack nearly shed a tear. For all their mistakes and failures, they still loved their daughter and were trying to do their best to be good parents for her. Elsa knew it as well, as far as he could tell. She didn't blame them for anything, not even for keeping her isolated from the rest of the world. She loved them just as much as they loved her.

Sadly, that would be the last time she'd see them.

* * *

A few days later, Arendelle received the grimmest news: some fishermen had found what few remains there were of the ship in which Elsa's parents were traveling. The King and Queen had perished in open seas.

Judging from the remains of the ship and where they had been found, it was quite obvious that no one could've survived. There were no bodies to recover, so the funeral had to be carried out with empty caskets. Anna was forced to lead the funeral procession, since Elsa wouldn't come out of her room. While most people thought that the older of the two Princesses was simply too overcome with grief to be in her parents' funeral, Anna was more confused than ever and couldn't understand why she acted this way.

Jack did, though. He'd been there when she learned of her parents' demise.

He couldn't remember seeing a worse reaction from her when one of the servants, Kai, told her about it. The shock had been too much for her to utter a word at first, but her emotions had spoken volumes through her powers which had unleashed a small yet fierce snowstorm inside the room. Then, when she finally had seemed to understand what she'd just heard, she'd leaned against the door and slid slowly to the floor until she had her knees pulled up to her chest. There, sitting on the floor, she had burst into tears—and as she did, a frost blast had emerged from where she was, and the storm had 'frozen' in place.

It had already been a day and a half since then, and Jack still couldn't believe his eyes. Every last snowflake had stopped moving in an instant and remained suspended in midair up until now. He had never seen this facet of Elsa's powers, but neither had he seen Elsa so devastated before. She had lost the only people she trusted and with whom she was close. He recalled how terrified she had been to watch them go and wondered whether she'd sensed that something terrible would happen if they left.

By now, Anna had already returned from the funeral and was speaking to Elsa from the other side of the door. There was a sheer level of hopelessness in Anna's voice as she told Elsa that she was there for her, pleaded for her to let her in, and reminded her that they only had each other now. Elsa, who hadn't even had the strength to stand up and get dressed in black as her sister had, listened to Anna but didn't reply. She just began sobbing once more, heartbroken.

Jack cried along with her, not only because his heart was with Elsa but because he had no way of letting her know that. He'd never felt so useless before. For a moment, he'd even forgotten that he was a spirit and tried to embrace her, only to have his arms go through her.

_**I'm stretching but you're just out of reach…**_

He was worried she'd starve herself to death, so he refused to leave her side until the following morning when she finally opened the door and accepted what Kai and another one of the servants, Gerda, brought her for breakfast. They also used the moment to give her their condolences. She nodded and walked back inside her room, closing the door behind her. Slowly but surely, she ate everything they'd brought her.

Jack stayed for a few more days with Elsa. Then, when his duty called him again one night, he approached Elsa who was sleeping on the bed. The pillow was wet with the tears that kept coming out of her eyes and which would probably keep doing so for a very long time. He didn't know if he spoke to her just because it would be more painful to keep his words to himself, but he reaffirmed the promise he'd made to her years before nonetheless.

"I won't leave you alone, Elsa. I'll always be here for you."

He walked up to the window, intent on flying away to the South. But before leaving, he looked back, just like he had done ten years before. There was something else he still needed to say.

_**"**__**I'm ready when you're ready for me…"**_

* * *

_"__Jack? JACK?! What did you do to him, Lizette?!"_

_"__It needed to be done…"_

* * *

**A/N: And that was Chapter 3. Did you like the song? Do you think it fit into the story?  
**

**Now, let's get to the replies:**

**_Serenity2893:_ Thank you so much for your review! I'm glad you liked the idea, and I appreciate your comments about the grammar and spelling. I always find such comments helpful, as I'm still learning the language. Again, thanks!  
_laloquita . co (review was in Spanish; it read, "I don't know whether to keep reading. Is the romance with Elsa or with Lizette?"):_ The romance is with Elsa, though Lizette will play an important role throughout the story. Thank you for reviewing!**

**On a side note, I'd like to suggest you read a one shot by Serenity2893 called 'Reverse'. IMHO, it's a masterpiece, and it just might prepare you for what's coming next in this story.**

******Thank you for taking the time to read this. I truly appreciate it.** What I'm about to say has become more of a personal punchline than anything, but like I said before, I'll keep updating no matter what.

**Don't forget to review on your way out!**


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